The Lies We Tell Ourselves, the Truths We Ignore
by TheShatteredBeloved
Summary: Lily and James... everyone knew that there was something between them. Something real. And while the rest of us fumble and try our hardest in vain to find - and hold - something that can even come close to touching the passion and tenderness of THEM...th
1. Meetings of Consequence

_Lily and James... everyone knew that there was something between them. Something real. And while the rest of us fumble and try our hardest in vain to find - and hold - something that can even come close to touching the passion and tenderness of THEM...they both tried their hardest to ignore, or disband the most obvious fact that stared and teased the rest of us – they were __**real, **__and they would love each other completely, absolutely for the rest of their lives. The rest of 'us' were jealous; especially since they wouldn't acknowledge what they had; which was what everyone else was always wishing and hoping for_

_My basis for this story is the thought that Lily has always been really hard on James, and James has always gone out of his way to be __**somebody**__that those close to him know that he is not. Why? I will share my take on the possible reasons behind it in the following chapters…_

**Chapter One: Thoughts of Inadequacy and Meetings of Consequence**

Strolling across the green grassy lawns with his hands in his pockets, James Potter whistled softy under his breath, a gentle half-smile plastered across his face.

He thanked his Great-Aunt Isabel for inviting him for her invite to visit her in these three months before school started. He was thankful for the respite from his parents, and the time alone to think about the what-ifs. _What if I don't get into Hogwarts next year? _He came from an extremely magical family – purebloods, and the thought of him not making it into the famed school twisted his guts something terribly.

Most 'magical' children – at least those born of magical families in the wizarding world – had their names up at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the moment they were born; a magical quill recording their names at their births. James' had been taken down, but unlike most 'magical' families children, James, at the age of 10 had yet to show any magical talent.

_That's not true and you know it, _he tried telling himself. True, there had been some unexplainable happenings around him during his childhood years, but in a magical family such as his they _could_have been explained many times through other reasons. James sighed and thought of his parents reactions to him **not **making it into the school, or (_even worse, _James secretly thought) making it into the school and not performing to his family's very high expectations.

Sighing, he was just about to start up a particularly grassy knoll when he was shocked to see a messy tumble of bright red locks and arms and legs tumble over the top and head straight for him. The messy bundle flew straight at him, and he vaguely registered that the screaming individual was laughing with joy when 'it' knocked straight into his knees and sent him sprawling backwards, resulting in a messy jumble of arms and legs and hair and … _oh shoot, where were his glasses? _Blindly he started scrambling around, barely registering a blurred head tilting to one side and regarding him with wide curious eyes.

Extricating himself with some difficulty, he heard a faint _crunch_, and flinched inwardly. Reaching towards the sound, he finally extracted the glasses from beneath the 'its' backside and sighed when he felt their frame badly bent. With no other option and feeling very awkward and irritated that his unknown assailant had yet to utter a sound, he placed the bent glasses on his nose and started at the vision starting back at him.

Long, fiery red locks tumbled fantastically around a petite face and framed wide emerald green eyes, sparkling with mirth and mischief. She – and the fact that she was female did not escape his attention – just sat on the grass where she had fallen, head tilted to one side regarding him with a silly smile on her face.

"H- Hello," he managed to stutter. _Bloody hell, _he thought blushing, _stuttering? James Potter? Thank goodness dad isn't here to see you! _Gathering himself, he smiled smugly and bent at the waist, holding out a hand. Summoning his years of pure-bred aplomb and pompousness, he grinned snarkily at her and raised one eyebrow, "Are you going to let me help you up then?"

She tilted her head still further to one side and was about to accept the proffered hand and offer of help up when he bent straight and jammed his hand – elegantly of course – back into his pocket. He leaned slightly forward and whispered, "Of course, I'll be needing you to apologize first"

He hadn't even seen lightening strike as fast as her eyes flashed and changed emotion, _Wow, _was all he had time to think before she had jumped up and tackled him to the ground. For all her slight build and feminine physique, she managed to somehow hold him down, much to his chagrin.

"Oh shame, has a girl beat the mighty snob?" she teased, and he started once again at her voice. Light and musical, it was as pleasant to his ears as her face was to his eyes. He struggled meekly to dislodge her, not really sure himself whether he wanted to or not. She grinned mischievously, her eyes alight with some inner glow that almost took his breath away, and he was still at that age were most girls were 'yuk'.

Finally summoning his strength, he managed to flip their positions around, so that she was below him. Her beautiful eyes widened as she wriggled vainly trying to get out from her predicament. Now was his turn to grin mischievously. Pinning her down, and leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Give it up, you cannot touch a Potter"

Her eyes flashed again and before he knew it he was somehow flipped onto his back – quite painfully. She was (somehow) standing above him, breath heaving in her chest, hair messily framed around that perfect face, hands on hips. She opened her mouth and he was not surprised to hear the flow of words issuing out, "You _stupid, ignorant boy!_ Do you think that the rest of us are below your notice and regal bearing? Grow up and get over yourself!" And with that she turned and stomped off, back up the hill and out of sight. He sighed and lay back, his hands behind his head. Ignoring the pain still echoing from his bruised derriere, he thought over the girl he had just met and realized he didn't even know her name. No matter, he would be here again tomorrow. And then she would get it; no girl insulted …and_ beat…_a Potter, not without getting some retribution.

But all the same, he _was _glad. She had managed to distract him long enough that he hadn't had a single thought about that _school,_and about whether or not he was going to be a disappointment to his parents and ostracized by the rest of the magical community. With such heavy thoughts bearing down on this young mans shoulders, he stood up, still with grass clinging to his back, and strolled off home, the smile and whistle gone as his thoughts of inadequacy tumbled through his mind.

_**Authors Notes**_

_**Hi All! I know that this chapter was a little 'long' but it is necessary for the basis of the story. Please read and review! Constructive criticism welcome!**_

_**TSB**_


	2. The First Humiliation Often Comes With

**To my first reviewer **_**WhiteBlossom143 thank you for the review, here's to you toasts and I'm hoping you'll be leaving many more (favorable ones of course!) :o)**_

"_But all the same, he was glad. She had managed to distract him long enough that he hadn't had a single thought about that school, and about whether or not he was going to be a disappointment to his parents and ostracized by the rest of the magical community. With such heavy thoughts bearing down on this young mans shoulders, he stood up, still with grass clinging to his back, and strolled off home, the smile and whistle gone as his thoughts of inadequacy tumbled through his mind."_

**Chapter Two The First Humiliation Often Comes with Dead Weight**

**James POV**

"It's no use!" James yowled with frustration whilst kicking the broom he had been flying.

He had been trying to make something 'magical' happen for quite a while now and nothing had come of it.

He was starting to panic.

He desperately wished that Sirius was here to help him. But Sirius had been locked inside for the summer, for talking to _him_. Thinking of this, James kicked the broom again, sending it flying against the trunk of a nearby tree. Sirius was his best friend, since the day he had been forced to beat a very young James Potter up, and his large grey eyes had managed to convey what his face and manner could not – that he was sorry and _somehow _was different from the rest of his family. But Sirius was not here right now and, although James could seriously do with some of his humor, he would have to sort himself out.

_Besides, _he thought grimly, _if I don't get my letter soon I wont be seeing very much – If any – of Sirius again._

Hearing a noise behind him, he whirled around so fast he tripped over a stubborn clump of grass and tumbled straight over, his glasses – newly repaired by his gran when no-one was looking whilst causing him much shame – falling off from their precarious perch on his nose. So involved was he in trying not to fall to the ground, that it took him a few minutes to turn and regard his assailant.

His breath caught in his chest and his face started turning purple. _It was her! _He had returned for his walks every day for the past two weeks to try and catch a glimpse of her again, but to no avail. He had – or at least he was telling himself he had – given up any hope of seeing her again (to extract revenge of course) and was getting into his plan of "Prove to Them You Are Worth Something" by **making **something magical occur around him. So far Plan A sucked and since there was no Plan B, James was ready to grab this sudden – but welcome – interruption with both hands and run with it.

"Hello? Helooooooo?" Sighing and stamping her foot, the girl in front of him – Red, as he decided to call her – waved her hand back and forth in front of his face.

"Are you ok? Anybody in there? HELLO???!?"

"Ok, Ok, no need to shout! I'm perfectly fine!" he snapped back at her, irritated with himself for losing his aplomb. Her face fell from – was that worry – to dead calm and the lighting he had met on their first round crackled again in the emerald depths.

Cocking her head to the side – which he was fast learning was one of her habits – he noticed a small, slight smile playing around on her lips. Just as he was about to become slightly concerned (remembering their last encounter) she had stepped forward, gripped his arm about the wrist and somehow done a strange twisty-twirly thing that resulted in him being pressed against a tree at a _very_ awkward angle. He gritted his teeth and sighed, feeling her slim fingers working at something and deciding he rather didn't want to know.

**Lily's POV**

Ok, I know I promised mum that I wouldn't get into any trouble before the meeting with the private schools headmaster later today, but this, this, **arrogant prat** has tested my patience too far today. Hasn't he heard and been warned about redheads tempers? Sighing with frustration, Lily tried not to notice that he was turning his head to look at her, she ducked her head so that her luscious red curls tumbled round her face protectively, hiding the blush that heated her cheeks.

**James' POV**

Finishing what she was doing, she bent over to whisper in his ear, "I _could _do so much worse to you, but seeing as you caught me in a good mood, I'm willing to let you off the hook with just a slap on the wrist," and with those words, she patted him on the head twice – which set him to grinding his teeth to refrain from making a comment – and trounced off happily, singing softly under her breath. Watching her recede into the distance, it took him a few moments to remember that she had done _something _to his hand or arm, or some part of him that he suddenly realized he couldn't…

Feel?

He couldn't fee his arm? His hand? His fingers (not even the little one!)

Oh _SHIT!_

Mum was going to kill him! Father too! Not to mention he was going to be a laughingstock for the rest of the community. He stood up and glared at the offending limp arm he held – or rather that hung – at his side. Gingerly with his right hand he reach over and lifted the left; raised it an inch or two and dropped it. With a sick thud in the bottom of his stomach, he watched it flop uselessly back and forth, and he couldn't feel anything! Not from the inside, when he bit his arm (having to hold it weirdly up with his other); not from the outside when he accidentally hit it against a tree when bending down.

James Henry Potter was **fuming**. He was walking home – very awkwardly, given that the floppy, useless arm flailed about ridiculously. And, seeing as he had his broomstick and knapsack to carry back home, he couldn't very easily hold it still. He was going to **kill her. **He was going to pull her apart piece-by-piece and feed her to his pet terrier, Scotch.

When he finally arrived home the expected and frankly inevitable happened. His mother screamed and fawned over him – in a very dignified sort of manner of course; his father, the pruned-up peacock sniffed slightly and shook his head, disappointed heavily etched into his features. He sighed inwardly while seething, and promised himself – especially after being given a lecture about his parents' disapproval and how they were not entirely sure that he could be their offspring (ok they never said that but he was sure he could read it in their eyes) – he promised himself that when next he went for a 'soothing' walk, he would take something with to repay little Red for her 'kindness'

_**Three Weeks Later …**_

James walked over the grassy knoll, heading towards where he had seen the redhead coming from the last two encounters. His arm had recovered on its own – though according to his gran it was thanks to her healing aura, passed down from the long line of pure Potter blood, and he had spent the past three weeks creating a (hopefully) full proof plan for getting little Red back. Now he was back to his confident self, and as he strode jauntily up the hill, he reflected that the biggest reason for this was the fact that he had seen Sirius this morning. In an act of desperation, James had floo'd over to his place and managed to speak with his unusually grim-faced friend for a grand total of five minutes before Sirius' mom had pulled him off by the ear. With the glare that she gave James, he had thought it in his best interest to high-tail it out of there before she came back for him.

As he crested the hill, he was happy and smug to see the red head, lying on the ground, eyes closed with a blissful smile on her face. She was obviously enjoying her peace and quiet and James was glad that he would be disturbing it for a very good reason….

_**Author's Notes**_

_**Oh come on people! Review please! I promise that those little incentives will make my fingers move faster!**_

_**:oP**_


	3. Implements of Destruction

"_As he crested the hill, he was happy and smug to see the red head, lying on the ground, eyes closed with a blissful smile on her face. She was obviously enjoying her peace and quiet and James was glad that he would be disturbing it for a very good reason…."_

**Chapter Three - Implements of Destruction and the Brotherhood Boundary **

For a moment James stood at the top of the hill, looking down on the sleeping red-head. For a second he just watched her, noting how peaceful she looked lying there; her red hair splayed all over the grass, a small smile on her lips. He felt a momentary pang of guilt for what he was about to do and shrugged it off; thinking of his arm and the humiliation and censure that he had received from the great Potter family. Thinking about his family he automatically stood straighter and squared his shoulders, quashing the impulse to turn and almost expecting his mothers voice to start ringing out in reprimand of something he had – or hadn't done.

Taking a deep breath; James dipped his hand into his pocket and fingered the objects nestled there. He let a small smirk grace his lips before continuing on down the hill towards the red-head, taking care to be as quiet as possible.

**Lily's POV – **

It was absolutely beautiful – peaceful and restful and just what she needed to take her mind off the things that were bothering her at the moment. She lay back on the grass and contemplated her future. In a little over a few months she would be leaving the comfortable, secure school she was currently in to join her sister at her Private school, and Lily was not relishing the prospect. She and her sister Petunia got along quite well, but they had never really been the closest, as there always seemed to be petty things to argue about. Lily loved the school she was currently was very lenient and trusted their students a lot – until given reason not to – and Lily was a master of doing what she wanted to and not only getting away with it but maintaining a squeaky clean reputation at the same time. This of course, drove her sister Petunia mad as Petunia tried her hardest to come first in school, sports and affections of relatives and somehow Lily always seemed to outdistance her in everything. This seemed very unfair to Petunia as she _knew _that Lily wasn't as good and pure as everything thought she was, but she had no way of proving it and Lily seemed - so far- to be too clever to slip up. But Petunia was sure that the day would come when her glory-seeking sister would get her come-uppance.

Thinking of all of this, Lily let out a long sigh and gazed with half-lidded eyes at the blue sky above and the few wisps of clouds floating like candy-floss across them. She knew the Petunia would be all over her at the Private school and that she wouldn't be able to let off steam as she usually did, and this worried her as she knew that if she didn't get to release some tension somehow then she was sure to mess up the Miss Perfect routine, and she couldn't have that. She decided that she was way to stressed right now and that she and Spider should think of something impressively and excessively large and outlandish to get her into the mood for her family's annual party coming up – where she would be introduced to everyone in the neighborhood, come near and far, and fawned over as if she was something precious.

Running through the different possible mischief-making scenario's in her head, Lily closed her eyes and soon drifted off to sleep. This is what caused her to fail to notice a bespectacled boy of about her age, with hazel eyes are dark messy hair creep up on her. And her much-needed nap and glorious dream – not to mention the fact that when Lily slept she became dead to both this world and the next – provided enough distraction for her not to rouse when he nimbly went about his pre-ordained task.

Finally, James stood up, a wide smile crossing his features, and slipped his 'implements of destruction' – as Sirius had so aptly named them during one of their brain-storming sessions – back into his pants pocket. Although not needing to; James dusted his hands off as he thought it looked cool and winked at the sleeping red-head before removing the final ingredient. Uncorking the bottle, he gave a few salt-and-pepper style shakes before corking that and placing it back with the other 'implements' in his pocket. He turned on his heel and made sure to silently creep back the way he had come, confident that he had at last gotten the red-head back in a manner truly befitting a Potter. He grinned and patted his pocket, fully aware that he had not used all the contents up on Red. He had made sure he had just enough to give Sirius a generous enough helping for insulting his Potter pride - and frankly James was still debating on whether or not he had crossed some sort of unwritten brother-hood boundary – by his offer of 'using a little bit of magic on the devil girl'

_**Author's Notes**_

**lilian72 – Thanks for the review :o) Haven't decided yet but I am quite certain that this will follow all their years at Hogwarts. Thanks for the review :o)**

**whiteblossom143 – Another review! Yay! I know you were looking forward to the revenge and I'm sorry to drag it out with (yet another) short chapter, but I work full-time, study part-time and have a fiancé and house to look after, so writing time is very scarce and it was either a short chapter or another week… **

_**Revenge comes in the next chapter, which I will try to post as soon as I have… ummnnn… Three to Five new reviews! – evil laugh **_


	4. What the ? And Boredom in Confinement

_**Author's Notes:**_

**Hello All! Sorry for the wait. I have been thinking very hard on what is to happen in the next few chapters, and hopefully my revenge will be humorous – or at least a chuckles' worth… **

**Its Saturday morning and I am perched with my fiance's laptop outside in the cold, and I have promised myself to write at least the next chapter… **

**So… without further ado, please read, and review… cause reviews make my world go round :o)**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Uncorking the bottle, he gave a few salt-and-pepper style shakes before corking that and placing it back with the other 'implements' in his pocket. He turned on his heel and made sure to silently creep back the way he had come, confident that he had at last gotten the red-head back in a manner truly befitting a Potter. He grinned and patted his pocket, fully aware that he had not used all the contents up on Red. He had made sure he had just enough to give Sirius a generous enough helping for insulting his Potter pride - and frankly James was still debating on whether or not he had crossed some sort of unwritten brother-hood boundary – by his offer of 'using a little bit of magic on the devil girl'_

**Chapter Four – What the ?? and Boredom in Confinement.**

**Lily's POV**

Almond shaped cat-like eyes slowly blinked open, giving Lily little slices of a picture-perfect blue summer sky, with a few cotton candy clouds dotting the visual landscape here and there… She smiled serenely and stretched her arms out above her head.

Placing her hands behind her head and sighing deeply with contentment, Lily lazily pulled her left arm up to check the time on her wristwatch. Seeing the digits flash before her eyes in their taunting clarity, she sat up with a shock and a loud "Oh SHIT!" tumbled from her lips before she managed to school herself. She was so very, very late. And images of Petunia's sure to be smug smile and her mothers disapproving glances caused her to shoot up from her position and run off in the direction for home, not even taking her usual time to neaten up her appearance and tame her fiery red locks so that she gave off her Perfect Lily appearance of calm and control.

_Ten minutes later…_

Clutching at a stitch in her side, Lily was sure her face was flame red from the embarrassment (and the sprint she had employed to get home so fast) she took a minute to recover when the door opened, revealing one very unhappy looking Susan Evans.

Opening her mouth to undoubtedly redress Lily's tardiness, her words died on her lips as Lily raised her head in preparation of the forthcoming tirade,

"Oh my, oh my, Lily dear, come inside and let me see to you" she soothed in a calm tone usually reserved for when one of her daughters were sick. She placed her arm around Lily's shoulders and pulled her into a gentle hug and then pulled her into the warm kitchen.

_What the?? …_ Lily thought to herself as she found herself being herded straight through to her bedroom, and then gently lowered onto the bed. Her dismay must have communicated itself through her wide eyes to her mother, as her mother took a moment to survey her and said,

"Lily, I know how much you would like to join us today with the shopping and preparation for your new school, but still, you should have told me you were feeling under the weather. You hiding your illness is admirable, but now that the secret is out you are going to stay in bed, as much as I know you hate it"

This was all said in her stern voice, and Lily knew better than to protest, but she still had to try, "No Mum, seriously, I'm _fine_. I don't feel sick at all"

Lily's mum beamed at her, "that's my girl, always making me proud, but you do not fool me missy! You are staying in this bed even if I have to get your father to keep you there!"

Lily sank back against the covers, whilst Mum was stern, Father was wicked, and Lily worked very hard to make her mother believe that she feared her father. If her mother only knew… she would be a hell of a lot sterner with Lily, and not dangle her father as a warning.

Lily's mum spent about twenty minutes more lecturing her daughter on what medicines to take, waiting till Lily had changed into her PJ's and climbed under the covers, and with a parting warning thrown over her shoulder that Lily had better no stray from her bed, she and Petunia left the house. Petunia's glare and nose in the air, she glared at Lily as she walked past.

Waiting for another five minutes after hearing the car drive off, Lily threw off the covers and jumped up from the bed. Going over to her dresser, she gasped in shock as she regarded her face. Red dots sprinkled all over her skin, and the normal porcelain white translucence of her skin had been replaced by a sickly white pallor, her normally bright green eyes dimmed as though she was in some inner distress or turmoil.

_But I feel fine!_ Lily thought, half panicked. She felt her forehead and was amazed to feel her forehead warmer than normal. _Weird. _Thinking that she must be getting ill, she took the medicine as her mother had instructed and climbed back into bed with a book.

But she couldn't read. Usually her favourite past-time, the words wouldn't register in her brain, and after reading the same first few lines over and over, she abandoned the idea and flopped back on her bed, feeling restless. Her natural energy levels were higher than most of her age, and she wondered how long she was to be confined like this.

Just as she was about to get up to do something more constructive before her mother could come home and catch her, she heard the front door opening and Mrs. Dawson; their elderly neighbour, called up the stairs.

"Helloooo? Lily dear, where are you?"

After calling down that she was in her room, she heard the soft footsteps climbing the stairs and Lily just had enough time to swear softly before Mrs. Dawson's kind elderly face, accompanied by her mass of gray curls, rounded the doorway.

"Hello dearie," she started, her warm brown eyes crinkling at the corners whilst she smiled brightly at Lily, who was trying to school her expression of exasperation, "your mother called to let me know that you had come down ill and asked if I would come over to keep an eye on you; as she and Petunia might take longer than she first expected."

Kindly brown eyes peered at Lily over half-moon spectacles, "is there anything I can get for you dearie?"

"No thanks," Lily replied in a sweet and softly voice, "I am feeling loads better and was thinking about getting up and watching some T.V. or doing some homework." Lily just wanted to get out of bed, and was silently upset that her mother had sent Mrs. Dawson to watch her. That her mother knew her daughter so well as to foresee her getting out of bed when supposedly greatly ill was no surprise to Lily, as everyone knew she preferred the outdoors and remaining active as far as possible, unlike Petunia who could spend hours doing needlework or some other (at least in Lily's opinion) mindless and pointless pursuit.

"Sorry, no can do dearie. Your mother left strict instructions that you were to remain in bed," Mrs. Dawson intoned in her kindly voice, but Lily could not help but notice the steely note running through her soft words. Memories of being baby-sat by the elderly neighbour, Lily remembered that Mrs. Dawson was not a force to be treated lightly, nor disrespected.

Sighing and resigning herself to her fate, Lily settled back on the bed, lifted the covers to her chin and politely stated that she was feeling 'a little under the weather' and would try to get some rest.

The firm nod and pleased smile left for her by Mrs. Dawson was enough to set Lily's teeth grinding, and, as she made her way slowly downstairs to 'sit and knit with a cuppa' left Lily wondering how on earth she was going to survive the coming hours; never mind the rest of the day.

**James P.O.V.**

Whistling whilst building his latest model in his room at his aunt's house; James Potter smiled as he glued the final wing on the miniature golden snitch and let it loose to fly around the miniature Quidditch Pitch he had built up from scratch. He was trying to keep himself occupied so that his parents and aunt wouldn't question him about the mischievous sparkle in his eyes; not to mention the wide smile that kept gracing his youthfully handsome face.

He couldn't stop thinking about the girl, Red. Grinning to himself, he made a few alterations to the spacing of the model hoops placements, and thought back to how he had gotten the idea for Red's payback. He and Sirius had been owling one another; Sirius being able to so whilst still under confinement by cunningly somehow cutting a hole in the wiring at the windows in the basement that was his temporary holding cell. This allowed the Potters little barn owl, Tipper, to squeeze through and deliver the letter James had by then sent for the third time, the first two unfortunately ending up in Mrs. Blacks fireplace. James frowned as he remember Tipper's reluctance to deliver a third letter, and James could hardly blame her; silently cursing Sirius' mother whilst bribing the owl with an oversized package of owl-treats. Poor Tippers feathers, which were by the second 'incidence' sticking up in all directions (much like James' unruly hair) were also missing in a few places, meaning that he had very nearly ended up in a hot fire of some kind as well.

After finally getting the first letter, and Sirius managing to get a reply back by using a spell he had learnt to write with instead of a quill and ink; James sent through to Sirius part of a gift he had received from his cousin, a useful piece of parchment that magically transferred the words written on it – or in their case; spoken to it – to a similar piece in anothers hands. One of each of these lovely inventions were now in Sirius and James' hands, and they were communicating freely, Sirius just needing to remember to keep his voice down to a whisper, lest his mother come investigate who – _or what_ – he was talking to.

Remember back to when Sirius had given him the brilliant idea of cursing Red, James smiled again, and now turned his head to glance at the once again black piece of parchment sitting to his right. He leaned over it and spoke clearly,

**Mission Red accomplished Sir…**

The words appeared instantly on the paper, almost immediately followed by Sirius' reply.

**Dashing James! Did it work as we expected?**

**Better! I am sure she wont be allowed to go anywhere for at least the rest of the week, and she is sure to be forced to stay in bed.**

Both boys (unbeknownst to each other of course) shuddered silently at that thought. Whilst trying to help James come up with a suitable revenge (after James becoming very angry at his best mates guffaws and rips about the _devil girl _besting him not only once but twice,) Sirius had finally replied by asking "What would be the absolute worst thing to happen to you, right now, in the middle of your summer?"

James had had to think hard about that one. His first answer would have been not to get into Hogwarts, and his second would be to lose or break his broomstick, but he was sure that Red was a muggle, and as such neither would apply to him. Not that he shared his first fear with Sirius; who also came from a pure-blood family and although they were best friends, it was a naturally given assumption that James would be attending.

His third thought though, was having his freedom being taken away and being confined against his wishes with his great reserves of energy having no outlet. Surely for a girl of the same age, no matter her lack of magical blood, would feel the same? Sirius quickly agreed, as he was pretty much feeling how horrible it was to be confined. And with that they had plotted the revenge.

The how was quickly managed by Sirius offering some of his pranking tools. They decided jointly to give her all the ailments of an illness – the spots, fever and pasty pallor, whilst leaving out the actual ill-feeling ingredients, and adding a slight pinch of pepper-up powder. The where and when were more difficult, and James had had to wait for the perfect opportunity – which had presented itself quite nicely, he thought.

James was shaken out of his happy reverie by his peripheral vision catching sight of more lines appearing on the enchanted parchment.

**James? Hello??**

**Do you have ANY idea how bored I am in here? Come on James! **

**Sorry Sir. Was busy with the Quidditch Model.**

**Still? I don't think I'll ever understand why you do that by hand. Why not get your parents to magically assemble it for you, or steal their wand and wave it? You know you cant get into trouble as you haven't started attending school yet.,**

James didn't know how to reply to this. He couldn't tell Sirius why he didn't do it magically – because he couldn't, even though he had tried very hard. But his racing and panicked brain also couldn't think of an excuse. Instead he tried frantically to change the subject.

**So, Sir. Have you gotten your letter yet? **

This question was asked with apprehension, and James experienced cold sweats, nausea and stomach aches in the few seconds it too Sirius to reply

**Nope, not yet mate. They seem to be taking their time.**

Of course this was said naturally, there was no doubt in Sirius' mind that he would get in.

If only James could be so certain.

**So how did it go? ** Sirius repeated his earlier question, desperate for something to entertain himself with

**It went better than planned. And she didn't even wake up!**

**Cool! I cant wait to get my letter, cause then mum will be proud and happy again and I'll get to go to Diagon Alley to get my school supplies, Want to try and meet up if I can manage to get rid of the hag?**

James' reply took a little longer than Sirius' had

**Sure mate. Sounds like a plan. Listen, sorry, but I got to go, my mum is calling me downstairs for dinner.**

**Cool. No problems. You gonna be around later?**

Poor Sirius. Too proud to ask for some entertainment.

**Sure thing. I'll be here later again.**

And with that, young James Potter put away the parchment and sat with his head in his hands, feeling his world closing in around him, only getting up when his mother really did call him downstairs for dinner.

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_**Author's Notes:**_

_**Yay! Longest chapter for this story yet. Hope that you guys enjoyed. **_

_**Please review! I will post the next chapter (which I have already finished); in the next few days if I get ten reviews! wicked grin**_


	5. Incredulous Boredom and Harmless

_**Author's Notes:**_

_**Yay! Another chapter! Hope you are all enjoying reading this as much as I am writing it… I might skim a bit through the first couple of years, but I will be sure to make this a long fic (unless of course it gets really boring :oP )**_

_**So… please do as you do best, and click that little button to review; and I will do my best as I always try to do; and keep y'all entertained :o) !!**_

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**Chapter Five: Incredulous Bewilderment and Harmless Entertainments**

**Lily's P.O.V.**

UGH! Two weeks! For two weeks Lily had been confined not only to her room, but also to her bed. There was now only a few days of summer left before she was to attend the new and assuredly atrocious Private School. Petunia's domain. Lily closed her eyes and once again placed her pillow over her face to muffle her screams of frustration.

Not only had the spots failed to fade away like a bad dream (which Lily had been reverently hoping for, but they had managed to spread even further. Her pallor remained the same, and the most baffling thing was Lily felt perfectly fine. On top of the world. Healthy and happy – well except for her natural anger and exasperation at being treated like an invalid and not being allowed out of her room! She was close to losing it, and Petunia knew it. Gloating and trying to rub Lily up the wrong way continuously, Petunia was making it very much harder on Lily than it already was.

Just after Lily had finished with her pillow-over-the-face-screaming-session; her mother knocked twice before popping her head round the doorframe.

"Lily, how are you feeling dear?" brown eyes crinkled in concern

"I'm fine mum, seriously, can I get up now?" Lily asked, trying very hard to maintain an even tone,

"Lily, you know what the doctor said, complete bedrest, and you will stay in bed until you get better. Now please don't be difficult"

Lily sighed and decided to get off a fast-becoming dangerous topic, "what do you need mum? Help with something? I can make dinner or do the washing or something?" Lily was desperate.

A chuckle escaped Mrs. Evans mouth, "No hon; thank you. I just wanted to let you know that Petunia and I will be out for the afternoon and probably the early evening as well. We need to go do some shopping, and they have this lovely little arts and crafts fair somewhere in Farrow…. Fairing…"

"Fairview?" Lily asked with a slight tone in her voice,

"Yes! Fairview. How did you know that? Anyway, Pet mentioned last night that she would really like to go, so I said we would make a turn. Now there is some chicken soup in the microwave; it just needs to be warmed up" (Lily cringed at this – she was so sick of chicken soup; the cure for death, according to her mother). "Is there anything I can get for you while we are out?"

Gritting her teeth, Lily managed to get out a somewhat polite sounding 'No thank you" and a grimace-like smile before her mother waved and closed the door once again. As soon as her footsteps had faded down the hall; Lily grabbed two pillows and stuffed them hard against her face, screaming and kicking her legs against the bed as she let out her anger and frustration. Fairview Fair was _hers._ She was the artist in the family, the only one even remotely interested in such things, and she had planned to compete in this years arts craft competition. Petunia knew this and undoubtedly asked to go just to piss Lily off.

And pissed off she was. As Lily lay fuming on her bed, she started plotting revenge against her _dear, sweet _sister.

_The next morning_

The scream shattered the early silence of the morning and woke the peacefully slumbering occupants of the Evan's household. Bolting from her bed and frantically into the hall with the rest of her family, Lily had to lean over and pretend to go into a coughing fit as she tried to restrain her laughter. Her father – just returned from another long business trip; caught her eye and the glint she saw in his let her know he was also having a hard time trying to be suitably scandalized.

Petunia stood in the doorway of her bedroom; her normally pale skin infused with a bright red tinge no doubt brought on by screaming barely being noticeable through the green slime she called a face mask and routinely went to bed with. Her normally perfectly styled blonde hair standing in tufts all over her head.

" What's wrong Petunia?" Lily asked in a fakely concerned voice – not that anyone would notice of course; her being Ms. Perfect and all

Petunia rounded on her, "What's wrong? What's _wrong?? _You know very well whats wrong you .. you… little…"

'

"Petunia! That's enough!" Her fathers voice cracked out like a whip, and Petunia instantly started wailing again.

"It's ruined! Just look at it!" And, as she turned around, everyone could see just how ruined it was.

The back of her hair was a tangled mess of knots and whorls and lord knows what else. Its looked like a rats nest embedded in barbed wire and hidden in a birds nest. Lily tried very hard not to giggle.

"Petunia, dear, its not that bad," Her mother started saying, but her voice gave away just how bad it really was.

"This is all _your fault! _ You think you're so damned bloody perfect and that nothing and no-one can touch you! But you're wrong and you just wait till you get to Victoria; and you will find out just how small and umimportant you really are!" Stabbing a finger in Lily's face, Petunia glared at her once again before turning to their parents.

Visibly collecting herself, as much as she could standing clad only in a pink terrycloth robe with green gunk on her face and messed up hair, when next she spoke it was with a modicum of control,

"Mum, would you mind please arranging for an appointment with the hairdressers first thing this morning? I need to call Vernon and re-arrange our early morning tennis breakfast" and without another word she leaned over to their father, kissed him on the cheek,

"Bye dad, fly safe and have a good business trip"

And with a last glare at Lily she turned and flounced (as much as a stick can flounce) back into her room, the door banging with a resounding slam behind her.

In the silence Mr and Mrs. Evans looked at one another and then at Lily. Her mother opened her mouth to say something and her father cut in first,

"Oh be serious, Susan. Lily is ill, there is no way she could – or would – have, pulled something like that on her own sister! Pet mus have made some sort of error when washing her hair."

"what kind of error could she have made, Tom? That poor childs hair is _super-glued _together! How the hell could she mistake that for shampoo?" Susan's incredulous voice got out,

"of course I don't think it was Lily; she is such a good child; I was merely going to ask her if she had any ideas how that could happen. So, Lily, do you?"

Averting her gaze from her fathers eyes, Lily looked into her mothers, and quelled the pang of guilt threatening to spark there before answering her mother that no, she had no idea how super glue could possibly get into Petunia's shower, nor how she could manage to mistake it for shampoo.

After her mother had gone to make the call to the hairdressers, and then gone to check on poor Pet; Lily's father offered to bring her a glass of warm milk to help her sleep.

Finding her already back in bed, covers pulled up to her chin and emerald eyes so like his peeking out at him, he chuckled and placed the warm drink on her bedside cabinet before sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Oh buttercup, whatever where you thinking _this _time? And what did poor Pet do to deserve it?" His emerald eyes crinkling with mirth at the corners whilst remembering Petunia's squeals and red face.

"Oh dad, how I've missed you! It's like the world has suddenly turned into Prison-for-Lily or some such nonsense! Petunia got mom to take her to the Fairview arts and crafts fair and she voted for Sarah Bellami!" Lily's voice was most distressed when parting with this fact. Sarah Bellami was Lily's number one arch rival in all things arty, and Petunia knew this very well. That she had still voted on her was an act of spite that Lily couldn't – and wouldn't –let go unpunished.

Hence the super-glue in the shampoo. Originally Lily was only going to put itching powder in her bra and panties, but when Petunia had come home crowing about the vote that had tipped the scales in Sarah's favour, Lily just had to sneak through to her bathroom whilst everyone else was at supper and doctor her shampoo.

Tim Evans sat back and regarded his younger daughter. She was very upset, he could tell, and he understood why. Lily's creativity was not something she shared lightly, and it had taken her three years to get up the courage to decide to take part in this years fair. She had worked long and hard on her project (which was now sitting in the bottom of the basement after being artfully re-decorated with pitch-black paint) and she had been looking forward to taking Sarah on again.

He sighed. The role of a father was a hard one.

"Oh buttercup. As bad as that may be," his stern gaze cut off her gasp of indignation at its birth,

"that is no excuse for… for… mutilating your sisters hair. Now I wont ask you to apologise, for Lord knows you'll never live it down if she's got proof if was you; but I do want you to know that it wasn't the right thing to do…"

Just then a loud screech echoed down the hallway and Lily stuck her head under the blanket.

"Lily…" came her fathers stern voice, and Lily slowly peeked just enough of her head out that her emerald orbs were visible, dancing with mischief; her slight shoulders shaking with mirth,

"is itching powder better Father?" she asked

Tim Evans let out a low chuckle, and then a louder one, and father and daughter, so very much alike in looks and personality, sat shaking as silently as possible whist Petunia ramped and raged around the house, tying very hard not to get caught.

**James P.O.V.**

He couldn't take it anymore. He really couldn't. The wind howled outside the Potter mansion and James lay back on his bed, looking around his room. He had everything and more that a boy his age could possibly want, but that didn't stop him from feeling like a failure. He sighed and gave up on sleep for now, making his way to the window.

Seating himself on the window-seat and clutching a pillow to his chest, young James Potter looked out at the Potter grounds, bathed in silvery moonlight. He couldn't make very much out, everything was pretty much blurred without his glasses, but he sat and stared at the moon and the clouds lazily passing it by, his mind swirling with a maelstrom of emotions, until eventually his head fell forward onto the glass and his soft snores filled the room.

_Hours later…_

A _tap-tap-tapping _woke him from his uncomfortable sleep. Yawning and stretching his arms, and rubbing the back of his neck where it ached something awful, James looked around to see where the noise that awoke him originated from. Tipper was knocking at his window!

He quickly jumped up to let her in…and fell straight onto his face as his dead legs – from being slept half the night – flatly refused to support him. After swearing and rubbing them back to life, he sarcastically thanked them for now deciding to work, and went to let Tipper in.

Obviously agitated, the small owl flew around his head a couple of times, pecking his cheeks painfully before relinquishing the letter. Seeing the Black family crest, James went over to sit on his bed before sliding the seal open and unrolling the parchment.

The words seemed to jump out of the page at him, startling him with their brevity but not seeming to seep into his brain until he had re-read it twice:

**I GOT IT! WE'RE GOING TO HOGWARTS JAMES!! **

**WHOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**

**Sir.**

James stared at the letter for a few more moments, dumbfounded, before scrambling off his bed and down the hall and two staircases at breakneck speed before screeching to a dangerous halt in front of the head house elf, Pippin. Whilst trying to breath air into his collapsing lungs, he managed to ask if any owls had come for him,

"Pippin… owls… fly… me… warts?" he gasped.

Pippin didn't look like he wanted to question his masters sanity, so after having James repeat the question in a saner sentence, he looked relieved to be able to answer with a no.

Feeling like his world was about to explode, James managed to thank the elf, but if you had asked him later, he could not have told you how he had gotten back to his room.

_  
Oh shit!_

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_**Author's Notes:**_

**_So... we like or we dont like? I'm seeing alot of hits ... please stop and take a second to review... i stayed up really late writing this chapter and I hope it does you all justice..._**

**_thanks to all who have reviewed so far!..._**

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